• Saving Lives at Sea Since 1869

  • Saving Lives at Sea Since 1869

  • Saving Lives at Sea Since 1869

  • Saving Lives at Sea Since 1869

  • Saving Lives at Sea Since 1869

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Located in the heart of the South Hams, RNLI Salcombe Lifeboat Station has been proudly serving the Devon coastline since 1869. With a long and courageous history, our station is home to a dedicated team of volunteer crew members who are ready to launch at a moment’s notice, day or night, in all weather.

Our lifeboat crew are local men and women who generously give their time and risk their lives to keep others safe at sea. They come from all walks of life but share one thing in common: a commitment to saving lives and supporting their community.

The station operates a state-of-the-art all-weather lifeboat and a fast inshore lifeboat, enabling us to respond to a wide range of incidents along this busy stretch of coastline.

Whether it’s rescuing swimmers, helping vessels in trouble, or supporting emergency services, our crew are always ready—and they rely entirely on public donations and volunteer support to continue their lifesaving work.

What We Do

Save Lives at Sea, in all Weathers, 365 days 24/7.

On average, our response times from receiving the initial page request to being fully crewed and launched onto the water are 6 minutes for the ILB and 9 minutes for the ALB.  Given that the crew must leave their place of work, get to the station, get changed into seagoing gear, prepare and then launch the boat, these response times are very impressive, and they allow us to meet and exceed the target to reach the casualty within 30 mins up to 10 miles offshore, in all weathers.

At Salcombe Lifeboat Station we have 1 full time RNLI staff member, The Coxswain, Chris Winzar. The strategic location of Salcombe, being the southern tip of Devon with challenging headlands and waters, as well as its proximity to busy shipping lanes, requires the Lifeboat Station be permanently manned.

Our volunteer crew are all employed outside the RNLI doing their day jobs but are available when required. 15 of the current crew are employed in the Marine and Fishing industry locally, with 6 being non-marine based including 1 Doctor as Lifeboat Medical Adviser.  All are trained by RNLI to a very high standard. Training takes place weekly in Salcombe and is structured and rigorous. In addition, the crew attend the RNLI College in Poole annually for a week of intense training in all areas of seamanship.

Between the 21 sea-going personnel there will always be a core of at least 10 available to man the boats including during holiday and festive periods.

Purpose, Vision and Values

Purpose:

The RNLI saves lives at sea.

Vision:

To end preventable loss of life at sea.

Values:

Our work is based on and driven the following values:
Selfless:Willing to put the requirements of others before our own and the needs of the team before the individual, able to see the bigger picture and act in the best interests of the RNLI, and to be inclusive and respectful of others.
Prepared:To share our expertise with organisations that share our aims.
Dependable:Always available, committed to doing our part in saving lives with professionalism and expertise, continuously developing and improving. Working in and for the community and delivering on our promises.
Trustworthy:Responsible, accountable and efficient in the use of the donations entrusted to us by our supporters, managing our affairs with transparency, integrity and impartiality.
Courageous:Prepared to achieve our aims in changing and challenging environments. We are innovative, adaptable and determined in our mission to save more lives at sea.